Here is the eighth chapter in this story released when I wanted it to be released based of my release process for this series. Tatsumi's intro arc has begun with and now that he's a Black Bull it's time for the second half of that arc which picks up right were I left off last chapter so there isn't anything more I need to say here. That is all I have for the administrative stuff I have for y'all and there are no guest reviews that need a response or questions to answer without it being a spoiler for something to come so I will end this here. Do keep them coming as your support is the best motivation for me to keep producing chapters at this kind of rate. That is it for this pre-chapter note so it is time to sit back and enjoy the seventh chapter in Akame ga Clover.

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to these two great animes.

Chapter 8: Confessions

At the sound of his name from someone in the room, which had been the last thing he'd expected upon entering the Black Bulls Hideout, Tatsumi turned to it showing that it was his name. That only added to the confusion of what was going on seeing as he'd yet to introduce himself to his new squad mates, but he only had eyes for the source of the sound and not the confusion going on around him.

The source of said sound was a strikingly attractive girl now standing opposite him with long black hair that cascaded down her back to her knees and bangs that framed her pale, angular face. Her red eyes were wide with shock, though they were swimming with tears at the same time, and her mouth agape with her hands raised to it as she stared at him and Tatsumi's green eyes met hers.

The moment that Tatsumi saw the girl opposite him the block in his mind, the one that had been there all his life since his rebirth in this world but that he was naturally unaware of shattered, and his memories of his past life flooded back to him in one solid, uncontrollable wave. All the feelings he'd had, the skills he could do easily despite seeming to just pick them up, even the nature of his magic, it all made sense as he gazed at the beauty in front of him.

His entire past life assaulted his mind from growing up in that remote village on the frontier of the Empire, to his trip to the capital where his friends got separated from him and then finding what happened to them from that monster Aria when Night Raid showed up to kill her and her family. From there it was proving his skills enough to get kidnapped by Night Raid and then joining them to becoming an assassin who paved the way for change in the Empire which led to the the war he'd been part of.

It had all returned in that moment he met the red eyes before him. It had all come back to him, he remembered all the lives he'd taken, the many friends that he'd lost, all of it was finally back in his mind. However, what came back the strongest was the memory of the girl before him, of how he'd met her and almost died at her hand, twice, to becoming friends with her after his first successful mission that she helped train him for to the promise he'd made her to survive the war and eventually falling in love with her.

All that came back but the broken promise, the way he'd failed her and made her cry one last time by dying right before her eyes when he'd promised to live, was what came back the strongest and the pain of it erased the pain of his block being shattered as nothing could compare to the pain of that broken promise. Not only that, but he'd also died as he fell in her arms after stopping that giant Imperial Arms and he'd done so before he could tell her how he felt about her. Somehow she was here, which made no sense as she was alive when he died, and she knew him, but he had to be sure that it really was her.

"A, Akame?" Tatsumi asked finding his voice and by now all the Black Bulls were staring at the pair in stunned silence, even Vanessa was sobering up at this as no one expected this and getting Akame's name correct really peaked everyone. "Is, is that really you? Are you the Akame I know, the one, the one who I failed so badly a lifetime ago?"

"It is me Tatsumi." Akame said smiling the smile he loved so much but which he didn't deserve after what he'd put her through at the end of his life. "I swear it on our Imperial Arms, on Murasame and Incursio that I am the real Akame of Night Raid, the same Akame who tried to kill you twice when we met but accepted you when you agreed to join and when you survived your first mission to kill Ogre knew you were true to us."

"Then in the name of Night Raid and all that we stood for, that we fought and killed for even if it cost us our lives, and in the names of those we lost I swear that I am the Tatsumi you knew." Tatsumi said understanding the test that now had everyone confused, especially Yami as that name sounded like the name of the spell Tatsumi had used, just how did they know each other and what the hell were they going on about. "And, and, oh Akame, I'm so, so sorry."

With that Tatsumi's resolve finally shattered and he fell to his knees on the entranceway and then onto his hands as he openly wept for everything that had happened and his own immeasurable failure in the end. That was what finally broke Akame and she rushed forward as the tears that she'd been holding back streamed down her own face and she reached Tatsumi in seconds, putting her arms under his and lifting him up so that he could cry on her shoulder as she held him and cried on his.

The last time she'd held him like this it had been his bloody, broken, corpse as he had died falling into her arms and she wept for his loss, for his broken promise, and for how she'd never be able to tell him how she felt as they saw the new dawn together. Now, though, he was warm and alive, weeping into her shoulder as she wept into his and felt his strong arms hold her just as he had after Sheele's death and again after she'd killed Kurome. He was back and he'd been awoken by seeing her. He'd need her now more than ever and she'd be there for him and this time she would tell him how she felt.

"Akame, I'm so sorry." Tatsumi repeated quietly but as no one was talking, just gapping at the sight, even Charmy wasn't eating as she stared a piece of meat halfway to her open mouth, so they heard it all as they tried and failed to process the scene before him. "I failed you, I failed to keep my promise. I didn't come back, I didn't see that new dawn with you, I didn't survive the war."

"I know Tatsumi, you promised me my love, but you broke it." Akame said crying into his shoulder her inadvertent confession slipping out, but she couldn't help it now that she had him here with her. "But I forgive you for it, I did so almost right away as I still held your body because I know that you did what was right, you died saving innocents the way only you could. You were the pure boy I fell for; how can I fault you for dying like that. Even Esdeath felt sorrow for your death, which annoyingly means that her feelings for you were genuine, but I ended her even if she got me in the end."

"How?" Tatsumi said, he hadn't heard her confession through the emotions of the situation, but he caught the end of what Akame had said and knew something was up, so he composed himself as he sat up on his knees, his hands on her shoulders as he looking into her beautiful red eyes and hating the tears he was seeing there because he knew that he'd caused them. "How is it that you are here or that I remember our previous lives? Did you fall in that battle as well Akame."

"I did but with you dead I had no reason left to see the dawn of the new age." Akame said her own hands now on his firm biceps though she'd fallen for Tatsumi because of who he was not his muscles. "I had to kill Esdeath, I was the only one who could, and she was the last great threat the Empire had after you took down that giant Imperial Arms, but she's a tricky one and took me with her as her last act."

"So, you cut her." Tatsumi said. "You managed to get the poison into her body then."

"Twice, the first time it was on her left forearm, so she cut her own arm off at the shoulder to avoid the poison reaching her heart." Akame admitted. "In the end I had to use Murasame's trump card, Little War Horn, to win. I did it when she froze time again as I needed the enhancements that Little War Horn gave me to create the opening in needed to slashed her shoulder to hip so that she'd die for good, but she pierced me with an ice spike when my guard was down. The wound was fatal so I made sure she fell so that I could die in your arms as your body was the only thing preserved in the area where our final duel went down."

"Akame." Tatsumi said his eyes wide. "I, how are we here?"

"I don't know but it's not just us, my memories returned a few months ago when I saw Sheele in Kikka." Akame said causing Tatsumi's eyes to go wide at that. "Before then I just had feelings, skills that made no sense as to why I was so naturally good at them and other odd sensations that I couldn't explain. Like things reminded me of our past life, Captain Yami is like Najenda for example, or I was reminded of having a sister, but I don't in this life that I know of, not that I know much as I was once again sold to be an assassin."

"It was the same for me, well not the assassin part but my upbringing was a lot like last time." Tatsumi admitted as he quickly processed what Akame was telling him. "Only this time I had certain feelings, I knew not to be naïve and not trust busty blonde women on my trip to Kikka for the Magic Knight Entrance exam, that I had to be strong and versatile and to master my magic as well as the sword and spear. It also explains why my best spell is called Incursio. The armor I make is the same as it and my attribute is armor."

"My attribute is blade, and my best spell is called Murasame, the katana I make I identical to her though it lacks the one hit kill nature it had when it was an Imperial Arms." Akame said. "Now it all makes sense as to why we have those spells and attributes. My drive to survive, my desire to be free of the life I was forced into once again and to root out corruption, when it came back I understood it all and now you do as well. For me it was like before. I was sent to kill Yami but failed so he captured and then recruited me after I met the Wizard King and explained everything that I knew at the time to him. The Wizard King is like a super powered Najenda as well, he's on our side regarding corruption and a better nation."

"I had a similar feeling to Yami, as if he was like a boss I once knew and now I see that it was his similarities to Najenda right down to the smoking." Tatsumi said as it all hit him. "But wait, if Sheele is here then are the others here as well? She was the first of us to die."

"I haven't seen them but, um, I am technically on a suspended sentence serving it as a member of the Black Bulls, and naturally I'll remain one when I am pardoned." Akame admitted. "I was going to find you first as I figured that you'd be here if Sheele was, but you found me. It has to be fate that Yami recruited you because how else would you be here with me. Tatsumi, there, there's something I need to tell you, something I didn't before because it took me too long to realize it myself and by the time I did I thought I'd lost to Mine and with her death so fresh I was going to wait until we saw the new age together but…"

"But I died and then you did." Tatsumi said understanding the slight issue they'd faced last time. "And I have something to tell you too Akame, something I was going to say when the war was over but as you said I died before I could do so. However, I feel like fate has given us this chance, this new life in a new world and we've found each other once again and our memories are back so it has to be that."

"Then together." Akame said hoping that it was what she thought it was. "Tatsumi, I love you."

"Akame, I love you." Tatsumi said at almost the exact same time causing them to stare at each other, their tears long dry but welling up again as they realized that their feelings were indeed mutual. "You mean it?"

"Of course, you fool." Akame said with a smile as the tears fell again only this time they were of joy not sadness at the past like before. "I took a while, and three Esdeath kidnappings or captures of you for me to realize it but, well, romance wasn't exactly something I understood given my upbringing. Still, I realized in the end that my feelings towards you were more than just as a friend and comrade and accepted them. I knew that they true and deep when you renewed your promise to me after I killed Kurome, but I was going to wait as Mine had just died, and she also liked you and we still had a revolution to win."

"I fell for your too Akame, I don't know when, but I did." Tatsumi said. "Maybe it was all the shit with Esdeath and her weird and creepy obsession with me, maybe it was Mine's confession of her own love when she died in my arms after you all saved me from execution, but by the I knew that I'd fallen for you Akame, truly and deeply. That's why my failure is so terrible, I failed to keep a promise to the girl I love and then I had to die before her eyes."

"You failed but you failed doing what I fell for, being the Tatsumi who changed the Empire even if it cost him his life in the end." Akame said deciding to gloss over Mine's confession for the moment, she'd deal with that later as this confirmed all that she'd thought about her teammate. "And when I too was mortally wounded I made sure to die in your arms knowing that we'd find each other again, knowing that our love would reunite us in the afterlife. A new life, well not what I expected but I don't care because here we are together again."

"Neither do I." Tatsumi said smiling through his tears. "And this is 16 years too late Akame, but…"

Tatsumi didn't get to finish his sentence before Akame was on him, pressing her lips to his as she knew at once that this was what he was about to do. She'd never kissed someone before, but she didn't care because there was only one person she want to kiss, and she was doing it at long last. It was with Tatsumi, her love, and at last she could show it and know that he returned it which made her first kiss all that more special to here regardless of the circumstances surrounding it.

Tatsumi of course returned the kiss with as much passion as he could put into it while on his knees as his arms went around her back and he pulled her close while Akame's arms went around his neck. This wasn't like the surprise kisses he'd gotten from Esdeath; those were one sided from her, this was a true, mutual, passionate kiss between two people with a love that had literally transcended lifetimes.

Of course, they were also awkward, socially inept, teens just like they had been in the past and had absolutely no awareness at this point that they were currently kneeling in the Black Bulls' common room making out like a pair of desperate lovers for the entire squad, minus three members currently not present, to see. At this point the level of shock and confusion from the squad reached a whole new level as they all gaped, and in Finral's case openly wept as it was both beautiful and heartbreaking to see for him, at what was going on.

They'd been shocked by Akame recognizing the newbie, Tatsumi apparently though only Yami and Finral knew his name before Akame blurted it out, but most ended up chalking it up to Akame's dark past even if the new kid looked like a straight arrow in a lot of ways. Then they'd begun sprouting utter nonsense to each other both before and then as they cried, stuff about dying and events in a past life. That was beyond anyone's comprehension, and they thought that that was the end. At least until the pair suddenly confessed their love for each other and began making out to everyone's shock.

The first person to break from this shock was Yami. He had no idea what was going on, but he had a good idea what was behind it as he alone knew of the strange block that Akame had in her mind, one that Tatsumi apparently had as well, and which was now gone it seemed. That meant that he needed answers, they all did.

Of course, Akame and Tatsumi were oblivious to this as they poured their love for each other into their first kiss before finally, slowly, and reluctantly breaking apart as they needed air. They were just opening their eyes to stare into them as they finally shared their love when suddenly the moment was tactfully broken by Yami grabbing their heads in each of his hands and lifting them cleanly off the floor to hold them in the air and glare at them as he squeezed for emphasis.

"Alright, I have no idea what is going on, but I think it's high time for some answers from both of you." Yami said as he walked over with the two newest members he had and dropped them next to each other on the sofa. "Start talking. How do you know each other and what the hell was all that about you dying in a past life?"

"Well, you see." Akame said as she took Tatsumi's hand in hers and locked their fingers. "Remember that block that I had in my memory that Mushroom Head discovered?"

"Yes." Yami growled. "I recall you being told that if it broke you were supposed to tell me and the Wizard King."

"Yeah sorry, I, um forgot when it happened as there was a lot going on and my focus turned to finding Tatsumi when I realized that he was here." Akame said sheepishly and with a slight blush to her cheeks that was both out of character and cute at the same time. "But, well, Tatsumi and I, we, um know each other but not from this life, from our past one that the block in our memories was keeping from us. You see, it all began…"

With that Akame began to tell their tale, taking the lead as she knew the Black Bulls better having been a member for several months now. Tatsumi joined in with his own story and roles in Akame's where he was part of their tale, but she wasn't present such as his battle with the Three Beasts and his various scenarios with Esdeath.

They didn't hold anything back as they told the tale of their past life, their actions and the many crimes they'd committed in that life, and how they'd died and been reborn in this world with the same names and appearances, and in the end similar backstories, but with magic that was tied in some way to their past lives now. It was a long story, but they didn't stop until the end as the squad all stared in shock at it and Yami knew that they'd have to go to Mushroom Head as soon as it could be arranged to confirm this.

Finally, they were done, ending with their reunion and the return of Tatsumi's memories that the Black Bulls had just witnessed. That was what had caused their little moment and they hoped that they'd be accepted despite all that they'd just revealed. There was a pregnant pause before finally Magna spoke.

"Are you kidding, of course you're both still members." Magna said with a grin. "After that story, you two are perfect for us. It's almost unbelievable but most of us have strange histories before joining the Black Bulls so we get it."

"Magna's right and given that I've seen Akame's memories, and you weren't in them Tatsumi I can only assume that this is true because the level of detail and emotion you've just shown can't be faked." Yami said, his words good enough to vouch for it for the whole squad, before getting serious. "But you two will be going to see Julius and Mushroom Head as soon as possible both to confirm this and because Akame was supposed to tell us right away if that block broke."

"Of course." Akame said as she let out a sigh of relief and smiled at her team while also understanding that she was in a little trouble from failing to disclose the block's destruction. "Thank you for accepting us despite this."

"Yeah, I knew that it felt right when I got here." Tatsumi said. "You're a lot like Night Raid."

"They really are." Akame said. "I've felt at home here since I was accepted after trying to kill the Captain."

"We of course, we're one big misfit squad." Yami said. "But I am sure the others have questions for you, right."

"A lot." Magna said. "You can't just drop that crazy story on us without any."

"Like did you really kill your sister?" Finral asked though he was more thinking of his half brother and how he wasn't sure if Langris would hold back from killing him if the situation arose but at least they didn't have the same messed up relationship that Akame and her sister had had. "My brother and I don't have a great relationship, but I wouldn't kill him."

"Unfortunately, I did but it was the only way we could resolve our fucked up situation." Akame said with a sigh. "Kurome and I were sold to the empire at the same time to be made into assassins. We survived the brutal training which few managed, that feeling probably helped me survive again this time around, but then they separated us to avoid us becoming dependent on the other. I was the older one and naturally better, so I became one of the Elite Seven while Kurome was sent to some mad scientist who experimented on her with enhancement drugs that she became addicted to. She wasn't human anymore, not in the normal sense, and even survived an assassination method that was almost always fatal while also able to evade a shot from a highly skilled sniper."

"That neck stab." Magna said. "From your teammate who had that illusion magic."

"Not magic, it was an Imperial Arms that allowed for it based on how it was made using a long lost practice we didn't understand but yes that attack." Tatsumi said. "Chelsea, she wasn't a front-line fighter like the rest of us, but she was a real assassin in terms of infiltration, so she went after our targets after that fight ended in a draw. She killed the first one, Bols, and then went after Kurome as the opening had presented itself but Kurome survived and killed her. We don't know the finite details as all that was left was her head which they put on top a spike thing in the center of the nearby town as a warning to us. She was the first of us to die in a while, and I found her head, so it was hard."

"Kurome only survived because of her artificial enhancements but the wound also sapped her strength, and she knew it." Akame said. "So, after we rescued Tatsumi, at the cost of Susanoo and Mine, and right before the final battle was about to commence, Kurome and I had our last duel. We both had reasons to kill the other, for me it was because I loved her that I had to kill her, for her it was so that I'd be by her side forever because those who were killed by Yatsufusa, Kurome's Imperial Arms, could become her puppets to control if she had the ability and by the time of our final duel she only had 2 left. We ended up teaming up one last time to kill a Danger Beast but then faced off. Tatsumi here allowed us to do so."

"I knew that it was the only way for it to end between Akame and Kurome." Tatsumi said with a sigh. "Wave, a guy a lot like me and who probably had feelings for Kurome, tried to stop it but by that point his will to fight was gone and he had no longer had a clue what he was fighting for, so I stopped him from intervening. He accepted it reluctantly and when it was over took Kurome's body away, defecting from the Empire in the process. He'd return in the final battle to aid me against the Emperor and his Imperial Arms and for all we know he survived the war."

"Few of us did." Akame said. "The boss, Najenda, likely did and probably Leone as well as she was still alive to my knowledge when I was killed but the rest of the squad died. Such was the life we lived."

"Makes sense, especially if you didn't have recovery magic." Yami said simply, he'd seen war, so he understood what the pair had gone through better than the rest of the squad. "Here, outside of the battlefield, rarely do combatants die because of recovery magic. In your former world, it seems like the limited magic to begin with."

"Other than those Imperial Arms things." Magna said, most of the rest of the squad weren't speaking or hadn't found the right moment to. "They still sound like magic to me."

"I don't think I'd call it magic." Tatsumi said as he thought back on how they were explained to him. "More a fusion of technology, lost arts, and special, extremely rare, raw materials. There were only 48 Imperial Arms that were made by the first Emperor and using lost skills that may well have been magic back then to forge them, but the core of all Imperial Arms is Danger Beast materials and those are monsters with unnatural powers. The one I used, Incursio, was made from a beast called Tyrant that could evolve and adapt to various situations and was actually still alive in the armor, which was what made it so hard to use so that only those with a true connection to it like me and bro could use it. With me it evolved a few times before the end."

"While mine was infused with the poison of a Danger Beast that was fatal within a minute if it got into the bloodstream hence why all I needed was a cut to kill someone though Esdeath amputated her arm before it could kill her, and I once faced an abomination that I had to behead to kill." Akame said. "However, I never knew what the Danger Beast that made it was. All Imperial Arms had this base, and it was the mix of everything that made them so rare."

"Where they ever replicated?" Finral asked. "Weapons like that seem really useful."

"A later emperor did try to make weapons that surpassed them, but they ended up being inferior to Imperial Arms." Akame said. "I used one before Murasame that was also a katana with the ability to ensure that its cuts never closed but it wasn't a good as Murasame which killed with just a cut. The power was such that usually when two wielders clashed at least one died, and they turned the tides of war, so we had to capture or destroy them at all costs."

"To add to it all, some of the Imperial arms had been lost over the course of history and their status is unknown so I only encountered about 20 and some were destroyed during the war like Incursio was." Tatsumi said. "Certainly, the last one I faced was unknown."

"They were also very varied." Akame said. "They ranged from guns like Mine's to katanas like mine and Kurome's to armor like Tatsumi and Wave's to more general things like gauntlets, a pocket watch, rings, and string to stranger things like giant scissors, a flute, organic ones in human or animal styles, and even in Esdeath's case a blood based one. It was all dependent on the Danger Beasts that were used to make them."

"These Danger Beasts." Charmy said between mouthfuls having begun to eat again during Akame and Tatsumi's story. "Were they tasty?"

"Really short stuff?" Magna asked. "That's your question after all that?"

"I couldn't speak to the ones that made our Imperial Arms but the ones I had over my time were tasty." Akame said with a smile. "Delicious, especially when Su cooked them up, he was really good at that."

"They sound like a fun fight." Luck said smiling his usual cheery smile and shadow boxing with a few sparks of lightning on his body. "As does that final battle, would have been a good time."

"There's something not quite right with you, is there?" Tatsumi asked looking at Luck.

"Luck Voltia, he's a battle crazed Lightning Mage but he's good people." Finral said realizing that there hadn't been any introductions and using that to move on as it probably wasn't a good idea to talk to the pair anymore about their past, not when the revelations were still fresh to all of them. "And on that I'll introduce the rest of the team Tatsumi. Next there is Magna…"

For the next minute or so Finral introduced Tatsumi to the rest of the team showing their odd quirks that had effectively landed them in the Black Bulls but that they were good people. Tatsumi just smiled, they really were like Night Raid in a lot of ways, a collection of eccentric weirdos who were really close with each other. He knew he would fit right in with them and hopefully this time they didn't start dying one by one over the next year or so but thankfully that seemed unlikely.

"And now it is time for your baptism." Magna said producing a new Black Bulls robe and brandishing it in front of Tatsumi. "If you want this you have to earn it in front of the whole squad."

"I do?" Tatsumi asked confused. "But the Captain already accepted me."

"Just humor him." Akame said with a sigh. "Though I wasn't exactly recruited the normal way so I can't say for certain if this actually a thing or not. Besides, it's not like you can't do it, you're as in shape as always and have magic now."

"True, alright, I get it." Tatsumi said reluctantly letting go of Akame's hand and standing up with a grin. "Let's do this, it's not my first rodeo."

"Oh, we got a cocky one, I'll enjoy this." Magna said with a grin. "Outside now rookie."

Tatsumi just smiled back as he and Magna went outside, the rest of the squad coming out and bringing the chaise with them to sit on as they watched. Charmy brought food that she and Akame began eating and Vanessa was drinking again while the others just watched as Magna and Tatsumi took their positions in the clearing around the base.

"First up physical prowess." Magna said with a grin. "5,000 sit ups and then 5,000 pushups."

"Alright, it may not be accurate but not a tough task in general." Tatsumi said simply before he began.

He wasn't as enthusiastic about working out as some were, but he understood the need for a strong body and with his magic, especially the Incursio spell, the stronger his physical body was the stronger he became when it was on him and the better the adaption element of his magic was. As such he worked out regularly and easily did enough to satisfy Magna. The same was with the strength training though he wouldn't headbutt a boulder.

"Damn, still no one dumb enough to try that yet." Magna said as his grimoire glowed and floated up next to him. "Now for the main test though, the test of magic. Using any skills, be they magical or otherwise, you have to dodge or evade my attacks."

"You are aware of what my magical attribute is, right?" Tatsumi said as his own grimoire floated up and opened to his side while Magna pulled out a burning bat from his own.

"I am so show me how strong it is." Magna said as a fireball appeared in his hand that he tossed to float in the air as he took a stance next to it with his bat in both hands and raised behind him.

With that Magna started hitting the floating fireball with the bat and sending more fireballs at Tatsumi. He had to admit, it was an impressive display of magic but nothing to faze him.

"Armor Creation Magic: Indomitable Shield." Tatsumi said as he easily avoided the attacks, his arm out and his grimoire flipping to the right page for the spell.

As soon as the grimoire settled a massive shield appeared before Tatsumi completely protecting him from the oncoming attacks. The fireballs hit it but didn't even dent it, simply leaving scorch marks on the grey metal. Even when Magna tried to arc a fireball around it the shield morphed to block it before it could hit Tatsumi.

"What the hell?" Magna asked stunned.

"An oddity to my magic that I didn't understand until today when my memories of my past life returned." Tatsumi said simply. "My Armor Magic can evolve and adapt to counter what is being done to it so in the case of my Indomitable Shield it can change shape and position to block me as well as heal itself if it gets broken. I have yet to find someone who can break it, but I am not arrogant enough to believe that it can't be."

"Smart." Vanessa said from the couch.

"Tatsumi was always that, he just needed experience to really come into his own and now that he has his memories back he's going to be even better than before." Akame said as she ate. "Though I think my blades could pierce it and the Captain's magic probably can as well but that's it and I am sure that Tatsumi's magic will adapt to withstand it."

"Perhaps but no point in testing it just yet." Yami said impressed by the shield, it would come in handy, and he did intend to see if Akame's statement on it was true. "The best test would be that beanpole sadist's Severing Magic so in time we can get Jack here to try his hand. If he can't sever it right away he'll keep trying until he manages it, he's a freak like that."

"Well, I'm not done." Magna said ignoring the sideline chatter as he dropped the bat and his grimoire flipped to a new page. "Flame Magic: Exploding Fireball."

Tatsumi could feel the magic and he needed to get a look, so a slit appeared in his shield to see a massive fireball in Magna's hand and understood what was coming. Instantly the slit closed, and the shield thickened as Magna threw the fireball, Finral watching closely to act if need be.

He didn't need to in the end as the fireball burst on the shield in an explosion of flames that forced it and Tatsumi back a few paces, but it held much to Magna's surprise. There was a massive scorch mark on the shield but that was it.

"My turn." Tatsumi said as he used his magic to toss the shield at Magna to force him to dodge and his grimoire flipped to a new page as he ran at Magna to end this on his terms. "Armor Creation Magic: Hoplite."

The spell kicked in and everyone, even Akame, gasped at the change. Tatsumi's clothes seemed to shimmer before shifting, his sleeves vanished, and his shirt and jumper were replaced by a leather tunic with strips of metal on it. Meanwhile his pants changed to a leather skirt thing with the same protections on it as were on his chest. At the same time, a pair of brass or bronze greaves formed over his shins and up to his knees as his boots turned to sandals. Lastly a black crested helm formed over his head leaving a face opening for him to see as he ran.

That wasn't all though. While his sword remained on his back, a round shield of brass or bronze that matched the greaves appeared on his left arm and a spear formed to his right side that he grasped as he held his shield up in front of him to intercept the next fireball from Magna on it, the only one the Fire Mage got off before Tatsumi barreled into him shield first at full speed and sent him sprawling back.

Magna hit the ground hard and Tatsumi was already pressing his advantage by closing the distance and bringing his foot down onto Magna's chest with enough force to wind him but not break anything and thrust his spear forward to stop just before the tip would have touched Magna's glasses, his arm never faltering.

"Well." Tatsumi said calmly his arm steady as he held it there with his foot on Magna's chest. "Do I pass? Just so you know, I can drive this spear through your eye and into the ground behind you before you could get a spell off."

"Damn, you're as ruthless as Akame was." Magna wheezed out. "Of course, you pass now get off me, I am your superior."

Tatsumi just smiled as he backed up, the armor melting off him similar to how Incursio did and his normal clothes returning as he offered a hand Magna helping him to his feet. Almost as soon as he was up the others were on them cheering and celebrating.

"I knew you'd do it Tatsumi." Akame said unable to resist throwing herself into his arms, they were together at last, so she was going to let this side out a bit more when she was with him. "That's a new armor form though."

"Yeah it's one of my spells that my grimoire had already in it which explained why I could create various kinds of armor on my body before I got it." Tatsumi said. "I can basically create different kinds of armor for myself, currently 4 kinds including Incursio, or put it on others as well as shield and protective spells. I think I even have a restraint spell and one that might be classified as a torture technique that I'm still not sure why I have it. Hoplite felt like the best armor to use, I save Incursio for when I need it."

"You're strong, fight me next." Luck said excitedly.

"Tomorrow." Tatsumi said. "I do want to see how my armor stacks up against lightning. Armor is from the metal school so it's a curiosity of mine."

"You were great kiddo and don't worry, I'll teach Akame all about how to please her man." Vanessa said winking at him as she offered him a bottle while Akame went bright red at that. "Drink up."

"I'm good, sis got me drunk once and I didn't like the hangover." Tatsumi said nervously. "Though the whole being attacked by a sadistic doctor and his grotesque experiments may have had something to do with it."

"Here, eat this, wait you can have half." Charmy said offering a cupcake that she then split in two so that she could eat the rest and Tatsumi accepted it, the little girl was a lot like Akame in terms of food, loved it but would share with her friends as well. "It's really good."

"Well kid, you showed why I recruited you." Yami said with a laugh as he pulled the Black Bulls robe that Magna had produced over Tatsumi's head. "You earned this."

"Thanks." Tatsumi said with a smile, the pure and innocent one he always had that Akame loved and that was always at odds with his ability to kill without hesitation.

"Let's celebrate!" Vanessa yelled thrusting her bottle of wine into the air and they all cheered and returned to the hideout to celebrate their newest member.

The rest of the night was a good one as Tatsumi enjoyed the company of his knew squad, Akame always by his side holding his hand or cuddling up to him though both knew that it would be a while before they could do more than kiss, as they ate, drank, and were merry for a while. Finally, though it was time for bed and Tatsumi was shown up to his room, it was a standard one the same as the others though Vanessa did suggest getting a double bed for when Akame began to spend the night as there was no way that Tatsumi would get past the trap magic on the girls' side.

That would come in time as Tatsumi and Akame explored their love at their own pace and started properly dating, a concept alien to them entirely but one they were looking forward to. Of course, before that they had to go and meet the Wizard King and this Mushroom Head person as soon as possible after all that happened.

That was going to be an interesting talk and as Tatsumi fell asleep that was on his mind but at least his mind was fully back. He had been accepted into a Magic Knight Squad so he could help his village, and what's more he was whole again. Even with the talk, he'd have Akame at his side so he couldn't wait to see what the future would bring as he fully embraced his second life as he fell asleep following his first day as a Black Bull.

Well, there it is, the confessions have occurred, Tatsumi and Akame are finally together, and their relationship will continue to progress, and now the current Black Bulls know the truth plus more of Tatsumi's Armor Magic and the spells that I have for him have been revealed but it's just a taste of his range just as I've only shown a few of Akame's Blade Magic spells. Of course, they now have to see the Wizard King which is coming up and learn what will come next for them and the Black Bulls as he too learns of what the block was but all in good time. On the note of lost Imperial Arms there actually is a lost one that appears in the anime that is so unknown Night Raid, despite having it in front of them, didn't take it because they didn't realize it was an Imperial Arms. For those wondering it was a scythe wielded by the assistant to the corrupt religious guy Night Raid went to kill and only seen briefly when he's dying from Murasame's poison. That is all that I have for y'all however so I will leave this chapter off here. If you liked it then please follow, favorite, review, PM, etc. it is all appreciated and helps me get better and stay motivated to keep producing more content and any questions asked I will do my best to answer both privately and at the start of the next chapter. Until next time.

Stringdog